Stocks fall as financial shares, GP slump

Dhaka stocks returned to the negative territory on Wednesday as investors went for selling shares, especially financial scrips and Grameenphone, amid financial sectors’ woes and political uncertainty ahead of national elections.DSEX, the key index of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, dropped by 0.25 per cent, or 14.11 points, to close at 5,529.81 points on Wednesday after losing 3.82 points in the previous session. Before Monday’s gain, the DSEX lost 34 points in the previous two sessions.Trading hours at the DSE were extended by 30 minutes to 3:00pm on Wednesday on the occasion of the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission’s silver jubilee celebration programme. The trading schedule will revert to usual hours (10:30am-2.30pm) today.The market began on positive note on Wednesday but the vibe did not sustain for long as investors resumed selling of shares especially financial stocks and Grameenphone, market operators said.They said that a section of investors were monitoring political fracas ahead of the national elections due by January next year.Investors’ lack of confidence over the market was apparent in recent days as they hardly held investments in any specific sector, they said.On top of that, a rise in non-performing loans of banks curved the investors’ appetite for financial sectors.The media reported on Tuesday that as per Bangladesh Bank data released on Monday, the defaulted loans in the country’s banking sector neared Tk 90,000 crore by the end of June as the amount of such loans soared by 20.23 per cent or Tk 15,037 crore in the first six months of this year.The average share prices of bank, non-bank financial institution, and telecommunication sectors plunged by 1.5 per cent, 1.3 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively.Out of the 30 traded bank scrips, 27 dropped and three advanced while out of the 23 traded NBFIs, 18 declined, two advanced and three remained unchanged.On the other hand, the average share prices of miscellaneous, energy, pharmaceuticals and textile sectors advanced by 2.1 per cent, 0.9 per cent, 0.3 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively after losing in the previous session.The turnover on the DSE increased to Tk 861.07 crore on Wednesday compared with that of Tk 714.08 crore in the previous trading session.‘Dhaka stocks closed downward on Wednesday due to investor’s profit-booking tendency, particularly for December year-ending stocks like bank and non-bank financial stocks,’ said EBL Securities in its daily market commentary.Of the 335 companies and mutual funds traded on Wednesday, 185 declined, 108 advanced and 40 remained unchanged.DS30, the blue-chip index of the DSE, also lost 0.33 per cent, or 6.43 points, to close at 1,932.01 points.Shariah index DSES, however, added 0.33 per cent, or 4.32 points, to finish at 1,275.92 points.Khulna Power Company led the turnover chart with its shares worth Tk 81.26 crore changing hands.Active Fine Chemicals, BBS Cables, United Power Generation Company, Nahee Aluminum, Shasha Denims, National Life Insurance Company, IFAD Autos, Oimex Electrode and National Housing Finance were the other turnover leaders.Intech Limited gained the most on the day with a 10-per cent increase in its share prices, while National Housing Finance was the worst loser, shedding 8.44 per cent.